Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice Extended Version: Movie Review

Well, I liked it more.

Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice is now available for
home viewing. The film directed by Zach Snyder and starring Henry Calvill, Ben
Affleck, Amy Adams, Jessie Eisenberg, and Gal Gadot received an additional thirty
minutes of footage from the theatrical cut. Does this extra thirty minutes fix
all of the problems I saw in this film? No it doesn’t, but it does improve upon
the movie. I think it would have been marginally better received by critics if
this was the version released theatrically. Many would have still hated the
film, but I think some who were on the fence would have spoken more positively
about the film if they were able to see more of the story that got cut out. I
would have probably went back to the theatre and saw Batman v Superman again if
this was the cut in theaters.

Here in lies part of the issue with this movie. I knew from
the before the film was even released that there was going to be an extended
directors cut. When I went and saw the film the first time it felt incomplete
with many of the stories underdeveloped. The movie didn’t flow well, and you
could feel things were left out. I knew there was going to be another version
released. Instead of going back and watching the movie again, which I did enjoy
but didn’t love, I waited until this was released. This is a more complete
version of the film. Batman v Superman still has story issues, but this
extended version feels more like a finished product.

The major change from adding in more story is the
development of Jessie Eisenber’s Lex Luthor as an evil genius. Almost every
scene added to the film gives more weight to his character. If you didn’t like
his portal as Lex Luthor the extended cut probably isn’t going to change your
mind. What it did was expand on how he manipulated Batman and Superman to fight
each other. It showed how he played each of them into a confrontation. This was
all done in the scenes added to the film, and they are predominantly focused on
Batman and Superman. We as the audience see how Luthor is the one pulling the
strings. I liked Eisenberg’s portrayal, so this added greatly to my enjoyment
of the movie. We got to see more of why Superman wanted to take down Batman,
and how Batman was duped into fighting Superman.

Batman wanting to fight Superman is still a little weak for
me though. Yes the destruction of Metropolis and his tower caused him to hate
Superman. However I can understand the people who are upset that the world’s
greatest detective didn’t figure out how Lex was playing him, especially after
the explosion at the capitol. I know what Snyder was going for here, or at
least I think I do. He wants us to think Bruce is so enraged that he isn’t
thinking clearly. He sees the destruction of the capitol, and the notes his
employee sent to him push him over the edge. I don’t know if I buy this, and if
this was the case I don’t think the Martha event would be enough to snap him
out of his blind rage.

I’m not sure what would, but it should have been
explored.

Instead of Bruce figuring out Lex’s plot, that is left up to
Lois. Lois Lane character’s story seemed all over the place in the theatrical
cut of the movie. She was either having to be saved, or working to figure out
the bullet fragment from Africa. The extended cut greatly expands her impact on
the story. She figured out Luthor was the one behind everything in the
theatrical cut, but it didn’t feel earned. It does in the extended edition. We
see her track down more angles, and find more missing links to determine Luthor
is behind everything.

The problem is the film still has Lois having to be saved by
Superman one too many times, none bigger than when she goes to retrieve the
spear of kryptonite. There was no reason for her to get trapped and need to be
saved again in this scenario. Let her dive to the bottom and get the spear,
come back up and give it to Clark. They still would have had a strong moment
with him telling her she is his world. Why not just have her be able to get the
spear and run it to him? I don’t understand that decision in the framework of
the film, especially since Superman has to stop fighting Doomsday to go and
save her again. Yes it reinforces how much Clark loves Lois, but at this point
in the film this added reminder isn’t necessary

Lois is what drives Superman in the movie, and I like that this
aspect was explored more in the extended cut. Superman struggling with not
being able to save the people in the Senate, and not knowing if he should be
Superman feels more complete in the extended version. The scene on the top of
the mountain with Jonathan Kent has more weight. Pa Kent tells Clark that
Martha is his rock, and was always there to remind him of the good in people.
Clark needs Lois for the exact same reason, she helps ground him in our world
and reminds him people can be good.

The big problem which wasn’t improved upon was what finally
causes Superman and Batman to stop fighting. Their mother’s name. Yes it would
be a strong connection for Bruce, but I just don’t buy him not killing Superman
at this point in the film just because he utters a name. Why does Clark even
say her name right then? Why doesn’t he just say Luthor is going to kill my
Mom? Something has to cause them to stop fighting, but this still isn’t believable
to me from the story the film has told to this point. I was hoping the extended
cut would give more justification to this story choice, but it didn’t

I liked the extended cut more than the theatrical, but I can
see some saying the added material makes the movie drag too much in the first
two hours. The pacing is affected with the added scenes, but I think the story
elements they add outweigh the pacing issues. This makes the film a better one.
I can see myself watching this film again as the extended version. It isn’t a
perfect film, and those who have issues with how Snyder portrayed the characters
aren’t going to be happy, but I more satisfied with this more than the
original. If you watched Batman v Superman in the theaters definitely give the extended
cut a chance on rental.

Let me know if you are
going to rent the extended cut once it is available. Let me know if you bought
it and what you thought. What was your favorite addition?